GAMING
I Built a Video Game to Learn How Reality Works
Before diving into this project, I had already spent some time exploring the principles behind game development and coding. While building a game might sound like a massive leap, I found the transition surprisingly natural. Since modern web games still rely heavily on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, many of the concepts felt familiar. The biggest difference wasn't learning an entirely new language, but thinking differently about how systems interact, respond to player actions, and work together to create an engaging experience. What seemed intimidating at first quickly became an exciting extension of skills I was already developing.
If you're curious about my thoughts on AI, let me start by saying it was incredibly useful while building this game. It helped speed up problem-solving, explain unfamiliar concepts, and point me in the right direction when I got stuck. That said, I believe most AI-generated information exists at the surface level. The real responsibility still belongs to us. As humans, it's our job to dig deeper, question assumptions, develop our own understanding, and carve out unique identities with these tools. AI can provide a map, but it can't decide where your journey leads. That part is still up to you.
I built the game in Unity, and honestly, my choice of software came down to one deciding factor: price. Unity was free, so the decision practically made itself.
To begin the journey, I experimented with a wide variety of character designs and concepts before finally landing on one that felt right for the project. Once the main character was established, I found a 2D tileset that matched the look and feel I was aiming for and started building the world piece by piece.
From there, I moved into the code. Since I already had experience with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, many of the programming concepts felt familiar. The challenge wasn't necessarily learning to code from scratch, but learning how to think like a game developer. Every character movement, collision, animation, and interaction had to work together as part of a larger system. Watching all those pieces come together and slowly transform into a playable game was one of the most rewarding parts of the entire process.
I won't bore you with every little detail I added to make this game work. There were plenty of moving parts, problem-solving sessions, and moments where I had to figure things out as I went, but that's a story for another day.
Even though the game only has one level, I think it's awesome. There's something incredibly satisfying about taking an idea from your head and turning it into something people can actually play.
Games tend to speak for themselves, so instead of me rambling on about how everything was built, why not give it a try and see what you think? I'd rather hear your experience than spend another few paragraphs explaining mine.
As for all the technical details, design decisions, and lessons learned along the way, I'll save those for another post.
Play my game HERE